


Unbreakable Heaven

by lgbtimelord



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: Curses, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Hope Mikaelson deserves a hug, Idiots in Love, Implied/Referenced Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2020-10-20 00:20:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20666204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lgbtimelord/pseuds/lgbtimelord
Summary: Act Number 1: Hope is cursed to see everyone who loves her die.Act Number 2: She falls in love with a girl who's meant to die.





	1. Chapter 1

> _The human heart has hidden treasures,_

> _In secret kept, in silence sealed;_

> _The thoughts, the hopes, the dreams, the pleasures,_

> _Whose charms were broken if revealed _

_—Charlotte Brontë, “Evening Solace”_  
  


For as long as she can remember two things have never left Hope Mikaelson. First her family, an unsinkable ship that stays together forever and always. The second, sorrow. Sorrow for her mother. Sorrow for her father. And sorrow for all the people she could love but doesn't allow herself to. Because she was cursed and anyone who dared to love her will eventually die.

She was twelve when it happened, that week would always be Hope's favorite in her memory. Everything was fine, her entire family was together, there wasn't an imminent threat on them and everything was fine. Her father was home and so was her mother, her father and aunt didn't fight besides their usual banter and everything was fine. She was learning new spells with her aunt, having fun and being happy, and everything was fine.

Until it wasn't.

Hope was waiting on her aunt Freya on the library, ready to start another lesson. She was going to learn to move living beings that day, only being able to move objects and elements so far. The room was huge, full of all kinds of objects, new, old, small, big, covered in blood or what looked like it. Among all those things there was a small engraved box, in a false drawer of her father's desk. He probably assumed that would be enough to keep her out, but there's nothing enough to keep out a curious Hope Mikaelson. The first thing she did when she found the box, was open it. A greyish fog pouredout of it in a blast, forming almost instantly into a living demon. The moment she saw the creature, she began to scream. She'd seen terrible things, awful people and people dying in front of her eyes, but nothing like this. Enormous, deadly with all its fangs and claws. She had no weapons and knew no spells to defend herself so when it roared, she fell to the floor and screamed. The thing was hovering over her, hissing, its claws closer and closer to her face when her mother bursted in. She put herself between Hope and the creature. She had no sign of fear on her face. She never had. She was not afraid to stand up and fight guys twice her size or took on creatures way more powerful than her and she had absolutely no fear there, in the library. She told the thing to get out. It was hovering there like a great, ugly insect. She told the thing to leave and never return but it laughed. It laughed, and it swung out with its tail, knocking her mother to the ground.

Then it fixed its eyes on Hope. They were all red, no whites at all. It said, strong and fierce, "It is your father I want to destroy, but as he is not here, you will have to do." Shocked, all Hope could do was stare. Hayley was crawling over to them, grabbing a sharp blade for one of the tables. "I curse you," it continued. "All who love you will die. Their love will be their destruction. It may take moments, it may take years, but any who looks upon you with love will die of it, unless you remove yourself from them forever. And I shall begin it with her." It snarled in her mother's direction, and vanished.  
Her mother, thought, did not die in that instant. Instead she ran over to Hope, took her in her arms, comforted her and told her the demon’s words meant nothing. Hope believed her. She made Hope promise not to touch anything inside the library again unless she was there and then she led her up to bed, and sat with her until she fell asleep. She was exhausted with the shock of it all but remembers hearing her whisper to her uncle Elijah, something about how she had opened a box that was in the library and that she was feeling dizzy now. But by that point she starting to enjoy the fuss that was being made over her, her aunts going to check on her and her uncle telling her her favorite story just because, so the demon was beginning to seem a rather exciting memory. She was already planning how to tell her father about it the next day. All worries in her mind about the demon's words were forgotten with her mother's kind words that it was all a lie.  
So she believed her.  
She still believed her when she woke up the next morning to her aunt screaming with grief over her mother's dead body, she tried to go into the room and her uncle made his best to keep her out but she saw enough to see her, swelled up, green and black all along her skin. The body in the room did not look like her mother anymore.

She knew what had happened, the words of the demon _"All who love you will die"_ echoed in her mind over and over, and as if reading her mind, her father kneeled before her, hugged her, and told her none of it was her fault. She believed him. He told her, after Hope's cracked and loud sobs, that whatever the demon had said, it was not true.  
She believed him.  
But her father and uncle died a few weeks later, out of love. Out of love for her. Because of her. So when her aunt Freya told her none of it was her fault, she didn't believe her.  
She didn't believe her and she left that night, took a bus to Mystic Falls, and didn't turn back.  
Leaving the constant of her family behind, only to be accompanied by sorrow now.

The Salvatore School was big, old and dusty. Not enough to really be called a school but working on it anyway. Four people lived there permanently, the rest of the students moved in and out in the summer and holidays. So the school family was only formed by those who lived there all year around.  
Emma Tig, a witch, teacher and guidance counselor, kind and thoughtful, always listening to everyone's worries and ideas. She'd be someone Hope would quickly get close to, so to her kind words she'd answered with sarcasm and low punches that she knew would hurt her.  
Emma stopped trying to get Hope to talk to her after a week living there, too tired of her insults to keep trying.

One less person that'd die for her.

Milton "MG" Greasley, a kind and funny vampire obsessed with comics and superhero movies, was kind and pushy to Hope in the weeks she arrived. He'd excitedly shown her the school and disappointedly told her where her room was when she snapped at him she'd been there before. His energy was too good, too happy, contagious and nice that Hope knew she'd get sucked into being his friend. So she pushed him away and avoided MG like a plague because actually hurting the sweet boy was too much even for her.

She did not mind though, hurting and screaming at Alaric Saltzman at any given point. She thought he'd be the quickest to hate her, he hates her father and entire family so it'd be expected he'd hate her too. But Dr Saltzman is the only one who hasn't given up on Hope yet, he still trains with her when she finds her at the docks and tries and talks to her when she allows him to. She knows it'd only end up in him caring about her so she makes sure to give him reminders of why he should hate her, throwing insults at him and reminders of his dead wife so they'd hurt him, so he'll decide Hope is not good enough to fight for. He's still trying even when he doesn't know the reason she left her family.

Regardless of all of them, the fourth person to live in the school is Hope's greatest sin and guilt, Penelope Park is the exception to all the rules she has set to herself from the moment she showed up beaten and with empty eyes to the doorstep of the school. Penelope's entire family had died in a dispute between covens, her family, one of the most powerful ones, had been murdered and she was the only survivor of the hit put on them. She'd gotten out of her house barely alive after seeing her family die in front of her and because of that she'd promised herself to never love anyone ever again, which is why they've become the best of friends. A girl cursed to lose everyone who ever loves her and a girl determinated to never love again, it made perfect sense in Hope's mind but the lingering fear that Penelope would wake up dead one day was still there, sitting quietly in her heart.

The entire year after Hope ran away pleas and demands of her remaining family were daily, the second year they became monthly and now, almost reaching the fourth year, they're phone calls once or twice every few months to ask her how she is and to call them if she needs anything. Hope always says she's fine and that she doesn't need anything from them.  
Short and cold, that way they'll stop loving her. They'll decide she's better left alone, she's sure she's getting closer to that after the months pass and she gets less and less phone calls from them. And it is in all that loneliness, all those moments pushing people away and keeping Penelope at arm's length, that books make her feel that perhaps she is not completely alone. Losing herself in stories of love and happiness that she'll never get and quests and adventures she'll never live. Books are completely honest in their words with hidden meanings, and with them, she does not have to hide the pain and loneliness she's feeling all the time.

The day Elizabeth and Josette Saltzman arrive, it was summer, too hot for her taste, she had spent the entire night playing the piano, trying, in vain, to perfect a song. She was not in the mood when she got to the dining room to three new people and everyone speaking loudly to each other. She talks over the voices, leaning into the door frame, "Having your annual _everyone thinks Hope is crazy_ meeting, are you?"

Everyone looks up at her and say nothing so, as usual, Penelope is the one to answer her, “It’s biannual,” she says, “And no, this is not that meeting. Dr. Saltzman's daughters arrived." Hope walks over to the empty chair besides Penelope and raises an eyebrow- "I didn't know Dr. Saltzman had any daughte-"

"I told you a week ago they'd arrive today." Interrupted Emma tiredly from the edge of the table.

"Ah," says Hope moving her hand around in a derogatory way, "that must've been why I didn't pay attention to it." The woman rolls her eyes and Penelope lets out a low chuckle besides her. One of the women sitting in front of them looks at her with disturbing calm, she looks old in her eyes but her physical appearance doesn't look past eighteen, she's got blonde hair and shiny blue eyes and Hope notices she's wearing a necklace with two wedding rings on it when she extends her hand to her.

"Caroline Forbes, it's nice to meet you. You must be Hope." Hope doesn't move at first and then, instead of grabbing Caroline's hand she takes the bottle of juice in front of her and pours some of it in her glass, normally that'd have annoyed anyone else but Caroline takes no mind and keeps going with the introductions, "these are my daughters Josette and Elizabeth." She says pointing to a cute brunette wearing a floral yellow dress first and a beautiful blonde wearing a black overall second. "Josie", "Lizzie" said each of the girls after it, Hope kept her eyes on the blonde, Lizzie, she thinks the girl is absolutely breathtaking, her hair long and falling down on her back like a golden waterfall, and her dark clothes contrasting to her pale skin.

Thus, without her better judgement, she decides to get the girl's attention by being, obviously, the most annoying she can be, "Well that," she starts looking at the blonde, "is a terrible nickname. Much more when you have a name as beautiful as Elizabeth."

The girl, however, doesn't shy away or blush, instead she laughs, "That's very rich coming from someone with a last name like _Mikaelson_ and it's just called _Hope_," she smirks and leans over closer to her, "sounds rather dull to me, if I'm honest." Hope smiles.

Sits up straighter on the chair and gets ready to keep going with the conversation, when Alaric shows up and twins run to him, breaking the moment. Hope leaves five minutes later, deciding she'd eaten enough, before turning down the hall she looks over to Lizzie one more time.

The blonde is looking right back at her.

Blue. Blue. Blue.

That's all that Hope has been able to think since she locked eyes with Elizabeth Saltzman. Blue as the ocean. Blue as the sky. Blue as a diamond. Blue as a splendid fairywren bird. Blue as Hope's paint, moving from one side of the canvas to the other on a worn out brush. The picture is beautiful, there's a woman sitting in a window, rays of sunlight contrasting with her dark blue dress and mixing with the blonde-white of her hair. It looks like a portrait made hundreds of years ago yet Hope can't help but think there's something wrong with it. She had her back to the door but when it opened she didn't turn around, there was only one person that would come in without knocking first. Penelope throws herself into Hope's bed and starts talking, "Interesting, isn't it? Alaric's daughters have been gone for what? Six years? You'd think he'd be more excited to see them."

Hope puts her brush on water and picks up a thinner one, "He wasn't?" She asks confused, the idea of a father not being excited to see his children did not sit right with her. She vaguely remembers her father running to hug her every time he'd see her after a long time, but quickly pushes the memory away and keeps painting.

Penelope laughs, "Right, I've forgotten that you don't see anything unless you deem it worthy, have two beautiful girls not catched your attention?" She thinks of Lizzie's blue eyes and snorts, "Careful Penelope, next you know you'll be in love with one of them."

"Oh please-" she starts while grabbing a book from Hope's bedtable- "you know I'm better than that, I wouldn't be so sure about you though." She says moving her eyes toward Hope's painting, "but no, I mean-" she continues at Hope's silence, "he's definitely not _thrilled_ they're here. He was very tense the entire time after you left."

She turns the book around in her hand, reading the tittle and laughing once more, "Shakespeare? Again?" Hope rolls her eyes at her, walks over to her and while taking the book from Penelope's hand she leaves a streak of paint on her check, Penelope lets out a gasp and Hope says in an serious and funny voice as if pretending she's an theater actress, "It is all about the oh so lovely tragedy." Penelope throws a pillow at her and they laugh together for the rest of the afternoon.

She sees Elizabeth again four hours later after Penelope had left her room to hang out with MG and the new girl, Josie. She'd given up on the painting and had picked up a book on fire spells when she shows up, slowly walking around the library and reading the book titles, sometimes picking one of them and seeing its contents. Not noticing Hope sitting on an armchair besides the window, she sees Lizzie picking up an old, worn out book so she says, "Be careful with it. It's six hundred years old and the only copy of its kind," Lizzie jumps and holds it to her chest, looking around to see where Hope's voice came from, "losing or damaging it is punishable by an entire week of detention."

Lizzie thrust the book away from her as if it were on fire but looks at Hope in disbelief. "You can't be serious."

"You're right. I'm not." Hope laughs and walks over to her, standing closer than necessary. "You did believe everything I said, though. Do I seem unusually trustworthy to you, or are you just a naive sort, Elizabeth?"

She moves her head sighly when Lizzie exhales in annoyance, a soft smell of mint reaches Hope's nose, "Are you seriously going to call me Elizabeth the entire time I'm here?", she walks towards Hope, their bodies almost touching, when Hope raises her eyebrow in a silent challenge as if saying _try me, I'll absolutely do __it_, she takes another step forward, Hope takes a step back but her back hits a bookcase, Lizzie takes another step forward. Gets on her tiptoes and raises one of her arms and with her perfume invading Hope's nose, bodies sighly touching all she could think about was _Lizzie Lizzie Lizzie._  
When the blonde finally gets the book she was trying to reach, she gets even closer to Hope, her mouth just besides her ear and whispers, "You really should be kinder to your guests, Mikaelson." Lizzie is gone before she notices and when her lungs starts to ache she lets out the air she didn't realize she was holding.

Most days Hope feels too much, too much pain and sorrow and despair and hate and anger. All those feelings bottled up and pushed way down inside of herself. Usually, they were a steady ache in her heart, just there, not enough to make the beating of her heart hurt but enough for her to constantly feel it. Some days though, all those feelings would come up to the surface and explode. She'd wake up and think of everything that has happened and know that she's not going to do anything that day. She'd cry for the rest of the morning and when she feels she can't do it anymore she'd try to distract herself.

She'd pick up a book, read two lines and think of her mother and all the stories she'd read her when she was a child, so she'd close the book.

She'd try painting but the moment her fingers touch the brushes she'd think of her father and his proud smile every time he'd seen her paint.

She'd go to the piano but after a couple of notes she'd remember sitting in her uncle's lap, his big hands on top of hers trying to teach her how to properly place them.

Those days felt infinite to Hope, she wouldn't go to the dining room or kitchen in fear of finding anyone, she'd stay either in her room or the library down the hall. If it wasn't for Penelope, who leaves her small lunches or hides snacks in her room when she doesn't notice, she wouldn't eat at all. Penelope never forces her to talk those days, doesn't even try to go see her, knowing she prefers to be alone. But those small acts of kindness make Hope want to go kick down her best friend's door and tell her not to care, to stop caring. At least, about her. She never does that, knowing it'd only make Penelope try harder. So she makes a painting for her or recommends her a good book she knows she'd like, an insignificant act for everyone else but something big for Hope, and some times, when Penelope's eyes don't seem so hollow and she smiles at Hope, she thinks it's something big for her too.

Today had been one of those days, sadness took over her in the morning so she stayed in the library the entire day. They were reaching two months after Caroline, Josie and Lizzie had shown up to the school. Hope hadn't talked much to the first two in that time, only seeing them in passing and during meals. Josie and Lizzie had started to dislike Hope after a well placed insults about their clothes and jokes about his absentee father, not that she was lying. But Lizzie's dislike seemed to be more about how she found Hope more annoying than rude, because, on Hope's good days, they'd go back and forth on dinner with their sharp and witty words. And if Hope was honest, she kinda liked it. She liked Lizzie. Lizzie wasn't just funny, she was smart and thoughtful, even if she didn't let everyone see that, she'd seen that side of her when they'd meet late at night on the library, one of them would be reading a book and the other would sit next to them and start to read out loud, it had started after Lizzie had shown up one day, red eyes and floor shaking, and Hope had no better idea than to sit her next to her and read. Lizzie calmed down and when Hope came running to the library with dried tears on her cheeks and blood on her hand three days later, she didn't say anything but the words in front of her.

Josie was starting to get fond of Penelope and, to Hope's surprise, the feeling seemed to be mutual. It was common to find them in the library discussing spells and other things Hope wasn't really interested into, but regardless of her surprise, she was happy for Penelope. She walks lighter now, her shoulders not tensing as much. Her smile is freer, not caring so much how long she laughs for. She looks like she's finally healing and, ignoring the sighly pang of jealousy she feels, Hope is happy her friend has found comfort in Josie.

The other twin, instead, had spent most of her time with MG or alone in the library, where Hope would usually find her and spend a few hours together. Poor MG, thought, has been obviously crushing on someone that is clearly not interested in him, but they must enjoy their moments together because when Hope sees them, they're usually laughing.  
She has wondered a few times what it would be like, to joke around with anyone other than Penelope and not feel the fear of them dropping dead in front of her eyes because they were starting to like her, but the thoughts leave her mind as quickly as she exits the room.

She goes to the library and opens the piano's fallboard, losing herself in the music to forget about it all. She ignores all thoughts about the curse and her family and all those _what if, what if, what if_ regarding Elizabeth Saltzman.  
The door opens and Hope doesn't turn around, she keeps playing with her eyes closed, "Penelope?".

"Nope, just me." Says Lizzie, making her stop playing, "Why'd you stop?-" she asks, sitting in one of the armchairs closest to the piano. "I really like your music."

"You distracted me," she states, "I thought you were Penelope."

"Sorry to disappoint-" says Lizzie, putting her legs on one side of the armchair- "but, in my humblest opinion, I think I'm better company than the she-devil."

"She-devil, huh? What has she done to deserve that title?" Lizzie throws her head back, letting out a groan, "She's just so annoying, she's been hanging out with Josie _all the time _we've been here, I wish she'd just leave."

"Well-" starts Hope, slowly putting down the fallboard and resting her elbows on it- "She's my best friend, I do not think I'd be happy if she left"

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Lizzie whispered.

“Don’t be. It’s Penelope who should be sorry.” Hope’s eyes darkened. “We will throw her out onto the streets,” she proclaimed. “I promise you she’ll be gone by morning.”

Lizzie sat upright. “What – no, you can’t mean that─”

She grinned. “Of course I don’t. But you did feel better for a moment there, didn’t you?"

"You're an idiot." Lizzie smiled. "So, what are you doing here so late anyway?" She asked after a few moments.

"You ask a lot of questions, don’t you?" Hope laughed, "I think most of the times I've hear you talk you're either asking something or annoying me."

Lizzie rolls her eyes. "Well, my mother always says curiosity is my greatest sin."

"As sins go, it isn’t the worst one." She moved her legs and put one of her shoeless feet on top of the bench and left the other one hanging besides it and regarded the other woman with a curious look. "So go ahead, ask me whatever you want. I can’t sleep anyway, and distractions are always welcome."

"Oh, I have more than you think."

"We have all night, Elizabeth." She teased her.

"Why can’t you sleep?" Lizzie saw that she had caught Hope off guard, a look of hesitancy flashed across her face before she spoke. Why would she hesitate? she thought, she could just lie, or simply deflect, but she sensed instinctively, that Hope wouldn’t lie. “I have bad dreams."

"I was dreaming too," she says, for a lack of better answer. "I dreamed about your music."

She grinned. "A nightmare, then?"

"No. It was lovely. The loveliest thing I’ve heard since I came to this horrible place. I think that is why I came here."

"This place isn't terrible, right now it's just quiet because there's no one here, you'll like it once everyone gets back." She says, watching as Lizzie stands up and picks up a random book from one of the bookcases.

She craneds her head back to look at Hope. “You know that feeling,” she says, “when you're reading a book, and you know that it's going to be a tragedy, you can feel the cold and darkness coming, see the net drawing tight around the characters who live and breathe on the pages. But you are tied to the story as if being dragged and you can't let go."

Her blue eyes were dark with understanding, of course Hope would understand, "Are you sure you're talking about a book?"

"No," she hurried on after a sigh, “I feel now as if the same is happening, only not to characters on a page but to me and my family."

"What are you so afraid of?". She walks over to her and takes Lizzie's hands in hers, her bodies so close to each other that Hope would feel the heat radiating off Lizzie's body, looks up to her eyes but they're focused and centered on her lips."Whatever that tragedy is-" she stops herself when she sees the red light between their hands for a slip of second before Lizzie takes hers out of the grip as if Hope's hands were on fire.

"I'm sorry- I- I didn't mean to-" she walks over to the door to leave, trips on the couch, and runs down the hall. _What the hell just happened _is all Hope can think about as she smells the remains of Lizzie's perfume and picks up the book she had on her hand, _"__Siphoners__ through history", _she reads the first line: _Witches__ born without the ability to generate their own magic but do possess a rare power that allows them to siphon ___magic from other sources and use that magic for their own purposes___ but their power is finite and their health, however, relies on how much magic they siphon daily. As for this..._

She closes the book and guesses whatever Lizzie wants to do or know is her business, so after she leaves and Hope gets over the shock of having been so close to her, she quietly leaves a small note under the blonde's bedroom's door: _Sometimes, when I have to do something I don't want to do, I pretend I'm a character from a book. It's easier to know what they would do._

The next day, she avoids Lizzie the entire morning, admitting to herself she'd been too kind and soft to the girl. That allowing herself to be anything but cold to anyone would put them in danger, it'd make them get attached to her and in consequence, die. So she doesn't go to breakfast and hurriedly eats lunch on the kitchen, hides herself in Penelope's room in fear Lizzie would go find her in hers. Her plan would've worked perfectly if she hadn't run out of ink and had to go find more in her room.

She finds Lizzie on the hallway, waiting for her, the note Hope wrote for her carefully fold in her hand. "We need to talk," she starts, "you've been avoiding me all day."

Instead of answering Hope walks past her and opens the door to her room, "So you're what? Not gonna talk to me?" She rolls her eyes and groans at the silence . "Last night-" _You were kind to me, _she was going to say. _Thank you._

The glare from Hope's blue eyes stabbed through her. "There was no last night," she said through her teeth.

Her words only made Lizzie angrier, "Oh really? We just went right from one afternoon on through till the next morning? How odd no one else has talked about it. I should think it some sort of miracle, a day with no night-"

"You wanna talk about last night? Okay, let's talk." Said Hope, walking over to the boxes full of supplies besides her room's window and concentrating on finding what she's looking for, "Why did you ran away? What was that thing you did with your hands?-" picks up a brown leather pencil case and turns around- "Why are you reading about Siphoners?"

Lizzie, frustrated, screams, "Because I am one, you idiot!". And that, was not something Hope was expecting. "Both me and Josie, and there's nothing I can do about it." She ends numbly, but before she can answer, Lizzie is leaving the room and closing the door loudly behind herself.

It is Lizzie the one who avoids Hope after that, not avoiding her in the Leaving The Room When You Come In way but rather faking a complete indiference when they're in the same room. Used to Lizzie's eyes on her when she walks in or says something, Hope thinks this is a worse consequence to her rude acts.

A month goes by and they don't say a word to each other, just when Hope was starting to get used to their almost friendly banter and their talks about books late at night on the library. So, in hopes to meet her there at night again, Hope spends her nights reading and searching everything she can about Siphoners and what it means for Lizzie and Josie.

And for Elizabeth Saltzman she does the one thing she thought she'll never do: she calls her aunt, and after Freya's shock and delight at her call, she asks her about Siphoners and how to stop them from dying. Freya, however, is not very helpful since she didn't know much about them but she promised Hope she'll call her once she learns something. She doesn't ask her, intentionally or not, why she wants to know, she's just happy her niece finally reached out to her after so long. She doesn't point out either the soft "Thank you" Hope says before hanging up.

She doesn't really understand why she's doing it, all the research, all the long nights. She doesn't understand the absolute anguish and heartbreak it takes over her when she thinks about Lizzie Saltzman dying. She can't think of a world in which she's not there, quietly reading in a corner or loudly laughing with her twin. She doesn't understand how she hadn't thought about her own curse in her pursuit of fixing the twins'.

At least until she talks to Penelope.  
She finds her sitting in the middle of her room, paintings and piano forgotten, with a book on Cruses on her hands. Hope hadn't eaten that day which is why she shows up with a ham sandwich and a small bottle of juice, looking worried about her.  
"Don't." Says Hope.

"Don't what?" She asks confusedly, leaving the food on the floor besides Hope, and sits cross-legged in front of her.

"Worry about me. We don't do that."

"We don't? I'd have thought differently after all those times we've helped each other."

Hope rolls her eyes, "Yeah, but we don't _care_. You can't do that, not with me."

Penelope stays silence after that. Which is unusual for her, she doesn't like silence. She'd told Hope, one night, so drunk she'd passed out after, that she hated silence because after her family died the house was the quietest it'd ever been. There was no radio on, there was no more of her mother yelling at her to come down for dinner or her brother badly playing the guitar. Just complete silence but her own breath and the heavy steps of the murderer. So after that, Penelope promised herself she'd be the loudest she could be, because her family couldn't be. Which is why her being like this, silently watching Hope, was the unusual sight she had ever seen.

"You know, when I got here I thought you needed me," she begins. "There is a wall you have built around yourself, and I have never asked you why, part of me didn't have to. But I know there's something weighting you down and no one should shoulder every burden alone. I thought you would let me inside if I became your best friend, and then you would have at least someone to lean upon. Someone to tell what's going on. I feared that if I couldn't get through you, no one would. I feared you would be left alone inside that wall. But now ... something has changed."

"Nothing has changed." Hope interrupted.

"But it _has_, Hope. You've let _her_ in, regardless of all your attempts to push her away." She smiles softly and knowingly.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She picks up a book and ignores Penelope's attempts at catching her eyes.

So she stands up and from the door, she says, "I don't know how she did it but I just know that it's true. Your walls, wherever you like it or not, they're coming down." and leaves.

  
Hope, sitting on her bedroom's floor, has the sudden and terrible realization that she's completely and utterly in love with Lizzie Saltzman.  
  



	2. Chapter 2

> _Come to me in my dreams, and then_

> _By day I shall be well again._

> _For then the night will more than pay_

> _The hopeless longing of the day._

_—Matthew Arnold, “Longing”_

It was the first weekend of the month. Four weeks since Hope had last spoken to Lizzie, three since she'd talked to her aunt Freya and two since she'd talked to Penelope and realized she's in love with Lizzie. As usual, Alaric would ignore all her protests and drag her to the fireplace to play board games and "bond" with everyone else.

"It's obvious to me that you don't want to be here." He told Hope while they were walking down the hallway.

"What gave it away? The fact that I told you a million times that I didn't want to come? That I didn't want to play your stupid games because I think they're a waste of time?"

"Yes," Alaric said. "That."

When they arrived, everyone was already there. Caroline and Emma were sitting in the sofa besides the fireplace, softly speaking. Penelope, Josie and MG were sitting on the floor in front of it, deciding (fighting) which game to play first. The first one loudly asked Hope what game she wanted to play when she saw her but was quickly distracted by something Josie said. There was an empty arm chair that Hope guessed was for Alaric, and in front of it another sofa with Lizzie sitting on it. The sight of her made Hope stop for a second, she was resting her elbow on the side of the sofa, a book open on her tights. She had her hair tied in a ponytail that made her hair look way shorter than it actually is, she was wearing what was obviously a pajamas, the t-shirt had a panda face on it, clothes a bit worn out. Hope quickly pushed the thoughts that she looked adorable out of her mind.She had a choice to make, sit besides her or in the floor with the rest. The thought of sitting besides Lizzie made her anxious but in an attempt to pretend everything was fine and there was absolutely nothing going on with them, she sat in the sofa.

She didn't regret it at first, they were far apart; Hope on one side, Lizzie on the other, completely ignoring the redhead's existence. She started to regret it when the games began and they had to move closer to each other in order to play the games, their thighs sighly touched and Hope felt her whole body catch on fire.  
She started to regret it more when they had to team up- because Penelope decided to team up with Josie- and they were not only winning every game but enjoying it.

Once the adults had gone to sleep and Penelope had taken out a bottle of alcohol they were passing around, Hope realized in her slightly drunk and blissful state that her back was pressing onto Lizzie's side and the blonde had her hand resting on Hope's hip. She tensed up and looked around the room, Josie and Penelope were in their own bubble not caring about anyone else but themselves -and Hope thought Penelope had broken her own vow the moment the cute brunette had shown up to Salvatore-, MG was about to fall asleep on the arm chair Alaric had sat, so maybe it was the fact that the drink was strong or that Lizzie's hand was playing with the end of her shirt, that Hope didn't move from her position and closed her eyes.

"Hey, wake up." Someone was shaking her shoulder. She groaned and ignore them. "Hope, come on, wake up." It was Penelope. She ignored her again and, thinking she was in her bed, she turned around but when she did she realized someone else was sleeping with her, a long arm was around her waist. Lizzie's arm. She jumped from the couch when she comprehended where and with who she was.

"Cozy much?" Penelope teased, picking up the last of the board games and shoving them into the drawer.

"I could say the same thing about you and Josie."

"That's not what it looks like," She laughed, but it was sad and hollow. Not her usual ironic or sarcastic laughs, "unfortunately not for my lack of trying." She added after a second.

"Has a girl finally said _no_ to Penelope Park?"

The brunette snorted. "Yeah, you'd think I'd have more luck the first time I fell in love." Hope raised her eyebrows, surprised. It was one thing for Penelope to say she liked someone, she usually got them and got bored of them no long after- reminding herself of her family and her own vow-, it was another thing for her to openly admit she's in love with Josie. "But, I'm starting to think it's all right to love someone who doesn't love you back, as long as they're worth you loving them. As long as they deserve it." She was not looking at Hope then either, another unusual thing. She looked not on edge, but uneasy about something. Probably her own feelings, Hope thought, and she understood. After closing off for so long, having a girl climb up all your walls was disconcerting.

Nonetheless Hope was starting to believe that if something has to do with Josie Saltzman, then Penelope would make all the exceptions and break all the rules, even the ones she had set for herself.

"You shouldn't be scared of it either." She added after a moment, looking over to Lizzie sleeping soundly on the couch, with a hand on the place Hope used to be and a small frown on her face. Hope looked over to her and felt the pull towards her like every time she saw the blonde. She turned around and moved the subject from herself.

"You sound like you know what that means. Doesn't Josie love you back?"

Penelope sighed. "It's... Complicated, I guess. And not really my place to say."

"Is this about The Merge?" Hope asked.

"You know about that? How-"

"Lizzie told me. Kinda." Hope interrupted her.

"Kinda?"

"Not the point. I've been trying to find a solution."

"Have you?" Penelope asked, interested.

"Not yet, I'll go to see my aunt soon. She said she'd look into it."

"You talked to your family? Are you ok? You haven't call them yourself in-"

"I know how long it's been, Penelope." She snapped.

"Hey," she said softly, "I'm just surprised. Do you- do you want company when you see her?" Hope shook her head and she nodded, that was one of her favorite things about her, Penelope never pushed. She put her arms around Hope and hugged her, they didn't do that often, but she guessed that for the twins, they'll once again make and exception. She put her hands on Hope's biceps and said, "We'll figure it out. For our girls." Hope didn't want to correct her so she didn't, instead she moved closer to Lizzie while her friend left.

"Lizzie." She whispered.

Hope ran her hand up Lizzie's neck, up to her face, just barely touching her ear with her fingertips. She didn't know why she was doing it, and part of herself was screaming that it was wrong because Lizzie was asleep. Her fingertips ghost across her cheekbones and stayed there for a second. Lizzie seemed to feel her touch and sleeply leaned into it, moved her face to the hand resting on it.

Hope closed her eyes for a moment, letting herself pretend that it was alright, that Lizzie was hers to touch and nothing will happen if she kept doing it.

Then, Lizzie opened her eyes and the bubble Hope was in pops. She moved her hand to take it away but Lizzie grabbed it from her wrist before she could. She slowly entangled their fingers, and Hope let her.

"I want to kiss you." She whispered so quietly she barely said it at all.

"What?"

"I said I want to kiss you, Hope."

She shook her head, "You shouldn't want that," she moved away, far enough for Lizzie to have space to sit on the couch but close enough for her to keep holding onto Hope's hand. "I'm a mistake. An epic miracle out of consequences and coincidences, less human day after day." She continued.

"You are human," Lizzie said. "Never think you are not. I have seen you with Penelope; I know how you care for her, she's your sister even if you don't want to admit it." She kneeled on the floor before Hope and put a hand on her chest, "If you can feel hope, guilt, sorrow, love, then you _are_ human."

In a rush, Hope clumsily cupped with her free hand Lizzie's face and her lips found hers. After Lizzie’s initial shock, she held her by the waist, kissing her back. They kissed for a while, it felt natural, it felt real and Hope couldn't help but think it wouldn't last. But Lizzie tangled her hands in her hair and slowly met her tongue with hers, and all rational and deplorable thoughts were out of her mind. Once they were both breathless, tired and were both smiling against the kiss, they only let go of each other to breathe. With a satisfied sigh, Lizzie's forehead came to rest against Hope's. Her fingers softly touched the sides of her face with her heart beating wildly in her chest, her lips tingling blissfully and the ghost of Hope’s lips against her own.

"I know this," Lizzie started and stopped herself. She sat up straighter and moved the hands around Hope's waist to her face, "I know you know about me and Josie. What's going to happen to us-"

"No. Listen to me-" she said, mimicking Lizzie's actions, "I'll fix it. _We_ will fix it."

"Hope-"

"We will." She kissed her, "I won't let you die." Another kiss. "Because,-" a kiss- "Elizabeth Saltzman-" a last kiss- "I've been hiding myself for so long, not wanting anything, not caring about anything, not _wishing_ for anything, but you. You are the first dream, the only dream I was unable to stop myself from dreaming. You are the first dream of my soul, and from that dream I hope will come all other dreams, a lifetime's worth. Because we'll end your curse. I promise you."

Lizzie, crying, kissed her and it made Hope forget she was lying to her right there, right to her face. That she might not die of her own curse but of Hope's. And there was a part of her that was telling her to stop, to tell the truth. But this other part, the selfish one, the part that longs for Lizzie as if she's air- it was telling her to let it slide, it was not Lizzie's job to worry about her and her problems.

The girl laughed then, it wasn't a happy one. "It's too late." she said.

"Don't say that." Her voice was half a whisper.

"There's only a couple of months left. If we haven't found a solution yet..." She looked away, more and more tears leaving her eyes.

"No. We'll figure it out, I've called my aunt Freya she'll find something."

Lizzie looked up then, "I thought you didn't speak to your family anymore." She whispered.

"Well,-" she answered, moving her thumbs along Lizzie's cheeks to dry her tears- "I think you're worth the exception."

She sighed, long and tired. "Still, I can't ask that of you. So whatever this is-" she said pointing between them and standing up, "can't keep going. I won't get close to you just to die and I know there's something that's holding you back too, whatever that is."

"No, Liz-" Hope tried to say but she ignored her pleas.

"I'm sorry. It's no good to us if we're ignoring each other one second and making out the next."

"No, no. Lizzie wait-" she grabbed her by the wrist before she could leave the room- "I lo-"

"Don't say it." She spoke over her, closing her eyes tightly, "Please, don't make this any harder."

She turned around and left. Had Hope ran after her instead of falling to her knees, she'd have seen and heard Lizzie crying just as much as her.

That same night, hours after her talk with Lizzie, Hope ran away. She ran until her legs hurt and she felt breathless. She ran for hours and ended up on the same house she vowed herself to never return.

The Mikaelson mansion was still as imposing and grand as Hope remembered it.  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Tw as @lgbtimelord  
Dedicated to Char bc she supports my shitty writing


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